Sorry for armed robbery

A MELBOURNE man will be sentenced next month over a terrifying crime spree stretching from Portarlington to Tullamarine.

Daniel Cartwright, 34, pleaded guilty to armed robbery and three counts of theft when he faced the Geelong County Court on Thursday.

Cartwright, who had been staying at Portarlington, stole a grey Holden Commodore from Epping and drove it to Portarlington on July 9 last year. Days later Cartwright travelled to a Tullamarine Coles Express in the stolen Holden. The court heard he filled the car with $105.54 of petrol before leaving without paying.

Hours later, Cartwright drove to a Kealba petrol station in the same car while armed with a 185mm dovetail pull saw.

He approached four people in the store, showed them the saw and said, “Give me money, what you have”.

He ordered a shop attendant to hand over cash before asking for cigarettes and then apologising. “Don’t worry about it,” Cartwright said after asking for the cigarettes. “Sorry for all this, I apologise.”

Cartwright was later arrested asleep in the stolen car.

Lawyers for Cartwright said the Thomastown man had regularly abused prescription drugs and struggled with mental illness. He will be sentenced on August 19.